Just Me And My Shadow
by Nova-Author
Summary: You understood. You understood my pain, my suffering, my agony. You always stood behind me, always waited for me to talk. It was always silence. Well, like I always say…it's just me, and my shadow. ShikamaruXHinata Pairing. Don't like, don't read.
1. Chapter 1

**Just Me And My Shadow;; HinaShika**

** Chapter One;; Troublesome **

**_You understood. You understood my pain, my suffering, my agony. You always stood behind me, always waited for me to talk. It was always silence. Well, like I always say…it's just me, and my shadow. _**

White fluff strolled through the saffron sky, wispy, swirling the slightest bit with each little breeze that whirled by. The fresh, subtle air whispering through the trees, the leaves rustling with every current, every fluid swish wavering the branches, causing the tree to croak and moan. The bark was the slightest bit rigged, scratchy, and had a sand-paper like feel to it. The ivy green grass felt as if it could crawl up your spine, tickling your toes with every gust of wind. The way the tall, lean strands of grass would sway was kind of relaxing; the brushy, feathery sound soothed the ears. A few, delicate, pale, flowers graced the tree with beauty, the waxy petals painted with scarlet swirls and sprinkled with pale pink flecks. The fragrant scent hushed my senses, the smell of fresh cherries and golden honey. The sunlight was dimmed as the sunset began to occur; the sky blushed with fruity peach strokes, autumn orange wisps, tangy yellow splotches, and the slightest dab of mulberry to blend with the collage of fruity appeal. The relaxing vibe was perfect, absolutely perfect.

The crunching of old petals alerted my ears. Ears perking, twitching a tad, my eyes narrowed as my fingers twisted and fingered a kunai, brushing the flesh of my long digits along the thin, sleek, narrowed blade, thinly slicing a bit of my skin. I saw a shoe, a sandal to be exact, the dark juniper color, the way the weight on the thick shoe-wear flattened a bit of the foliage beneath it. My eyes following the short legs, the structure of the body was a tad bit shaky, vibrating, the skin was visibly twitching. Though my gaze snapped quickly when I saw a drop of liquid splash against a bud of grass, and then my eyes averted back to the person, eyes flashing to her face, her eyes were closed tightly, a few beads of liquid escaping the edges of the big, pale eyes, the fluid splashing against the long lashes that often batted when she was nervous. It was Hinata Hyuga. No, it didn't shock me. Yes, I was wondering why she was all the way out here in the depths of the forest. I knew that she'd escape her feelings in the forest, but I never knew she reached this point without shriveling and breaking down near the entrance of the woods.

I said nothing. Lightly tapping my hand next to me, the light pounding noise vibrated through the air, though I was positive that only I could hear it. Within my time of being quiet, enveloped in the forest, and all alone, my senses had developed much more than if I hadn't. Withdrawing my hand away from the plush dirt and foliage, I shrugged my shoulders back and loosened up my jacket that coated my knitted black top and under-shirt, shrugging it off my shoulders, grasping it between my fingers and laying it down for her to sit on, not wanting her pants to get all dirty, and hard to wash. When she sat down, her knees instantly rose to her chin, cradling herself, wrapping her arms tightly around her shaky legs, burying her face into her pants, tears splashing onto them, moistening the fabric.

Part of me wanted to ask her what was wrong, the other part didn't see it fit to say anything at all. Instead, I lifted my hand from my lap, hand jerking a bit before steadying its mobility. With a digit, I lightly brushed the side of her cheek, moving a few strands of hair away, the strands resisting a bit do to the dewy, sticky flesh that is the clumped on. With the appendage I swirled the hair around a few times, tucking it behind her ear, and then traced my finger back down to her cheek, softly brushing the flushed skin, catching a few tears on my own skin, the salty water splashing underneath my fingernail.

"Hush now…"I whispered, the words tickling my lips. I brushed my flesh against her cheek again, asking,

"What's wrong…?" The words were hardly more than a hushed croak, choking on my breath a bit. The slack of communication was hurting, her sobs and whimpers tainting the quiet breeze.

Her eyes finally met mine, her cheeks were stained with soft red, eyes puffy and pink from all the tears she had shed, teeth clicking, making a chattering noise, her hands were shaking.

"T-Th-They d-d-disowned m-m-me," She managed to choke through her teeth, "T-The h-heritage is g-going to N-N-Neji." Her sobs stopped at a dead end, trying to catch some breath after her cries died out, "T-they t-thought that I w-wasn't g-good enough f-for the Hyuga C-C-Compound..."

Something clicked together in my brain, tying a few strands together, finally piecing the puzzle. They Hyuga family basically left little Hinata out of the heritage because she was much weaker than her older cousin, Neji, and they thought her unreasonable, and didn't even consider her because of her constant stuttering and her mercy, which her brother didn't own.

"I'm sorry." I said quietly, though that was the only thing that I could think to say at that moment. Lifting my hand again, I placed it on her shoulder and rubbed my hand chastely on the soft, plush coat that she wore.

She glanced at me gently and with a fluid motion she swung her arms around my neck, gripping tightly, pulling herself into my lap, snuggling her face into the netting and fabric of my knitted shirt and undershirt, burying her face between the netting, nose poking my sternum gently. My arm instinctively rising from my side, I wrapped it around her from the side and pulled her a bit more into my chest, allowing her to sit in my lap. I knew she needed comfort, I knew that she was really upset. I huffed absently and rested my forehead against her free shoulder, closing my eyes slowly, eyelashes brushing my under-eye, the dark, pale violet circles that traced the outside of my eyes revealed how tired I had been lately and the lack of sleep that I was receiving. Grazing my digits over her shoulder, I inhaled her sweet, sugary scent, mixed with the pleasant tinge of herbs.

Within time, I noticed that she was gripping my arm, handling it with care, stroking her finger on the weaved top and the loose-fitting undershirt. Tugging gently at the fabric, she rolled up the sleeves with care, examining my lower arms. I gulped, the clump of saliva heaving down my throat. This made me quite nervous and a bit uncomfortable with her presence. She didn't need to know. She didn't need to see what was underneath the twined fabric, the weaved mess. That's when it happened.

Her fingers were tracing little red engraves, thumb rubbing the welting scars, the blood rushing up to the pressure she was inflicting on the wounds. Elevating my arm, she sat down firmly in my lap and wrapped her legs around me; she placed the arm on her knee, though I was tempted to revoke my arm. She was dabbling with her coat, fiddling with the zipper of it, the shiny, cold knob that was the zipper. She quickly removed her coat and placed it in her lap in a bundle. Drawing her sleeve up, she revealed incisions that littered her arms. They had such perfection, such precision. They were clean incisions. Perfect. Though her face was unscathed, she definitely had issues hidden underneath her timid smile. Just as I suspected.

"Y-You're j-just like me."

My eyes shot up and met her gaze. Her eyes held an empty, emotionless gaze. I felt a burning sensation affecting my nose, and a tingling sensation in my eyes, the ends of my lips pinching down into a tight frown, tears escaping my eyes, running down my cheeks, keeping down a choked whimper. I said nothing.

I swung my arms around her neck and held her close to me, letting my tears come free, cascading down my orangey flesh, leaving tear-trail stains. I choked out a whimper,

"I'm so sorry."

Her gaze came across mine again, eyes holding a tender sentiment. The atmosphere was tight. How did we even get here in the first place? I hardly knew her at first…but now we were corresponding as if we knew each other our whole lives and were associated forever.

"D-Don't f-feel r-r-remorseful for m-me…I-it's not a big d-deal." She tried to carry a definite tone when she talked, but it fell short and ended up sounding more like a plead for me not to feel sympathy for her.

"It's obviously a big deal if you are crying and you're acting in this manner, Hinata Hyuga." I muttered lightly.

She obviously had no idea what to say, she was most likely fumbling with words, getting them caught on her tongue, but even if she were to speak them, she'd most likely trip over them with her tongue.

I exhaled noisily, then inhaling the aroma that ticked her neck. My eyes were polished, a lethargic daze caught in my eyes. My inactive life-style caused me to plunge into slumber behind schedule, and this was no exception. It was late-night, I was tired, and a slumber was tainting my eye-lids. Whatever. What was the worse that could possibly happen? I mean, they can't yell at me for comforting a fellow Junín.

Elevating my arm, I grappled her arm and turned it over, my eyes exploring the skin of her nimble arm, examining the burgundy lacerations, the way that they disfigured the beauty of the ashen flesh. Moving my supple fingers towards the blemishes, the apex of my fingers caressed the wounded skin, placidly stroking each stripe and twisted mark.

Her gape met mine rather slowly, a perplexed look contaminating her pale jade eyes, swirled with the slightest bit of liberation.

"Don't make those incisions on your arms anymore, your blood doesn't need to spill over insignificant people and actions, it's not your fault that you are the way you are, no matter what someone says, just don't inflict this damage on your skin…" I rested my forehead against her own forehead, eyes gazing at sweet nothingness, "Hinata, you're beautiful, don't let anyone tell you otherwise, don't let anyone hurt you, don't let them do that…" I choked on the words at the end, holding back tears.

She stammered and stuttered, trying to locate words she wanted to say. I saw it in her eyes. Her eyes held a bit of disbelief, a flabbergasted look that painted her face,

"Sh-Shi-Shikamaru…"

I became more alert as I heard my name, ears shuddering the most insignificant bit.

"Yes?" The words glided through my lips, uncertain of what she was going to say to me. A bit of worry flashed through my mind.

"Than-Thank y-you….so m-much." She breathed heavily, resting her head in the crook of my shoulder, letting a few tears slide off the waterline of her eyes.

"No problem." I said quickly, bringing my hand up to the back of her head, the calloused fingers sliding gently through her raven hair, tangling through the smooth locks. I huffed and snaked my head around the side of her head and rested my chin on the back of her neck and relaxed my muscles and fell backwards a bit more, my grip on her still gentle, yet firm, enjoying her warmth and her company. I leaned against the tree, resting my head against the hard wood. As I adjusted how I sat, I noticed that the young Hyuga was breathing heavily, her chest heaving up and down. I tilted her back a smidgen to notice that she was safe and sound, asleep, tear trails beneath her eyes. Taking a thumb, I swiped the remaining tears off of her face. I eyed the scars again and shook my head the slightest bit before resting my head back against the tree to sleep, murmuring,

"Troublesome."


	2. The Mother of All Bad Habits

**Chapter Two;; The Mother of All Bad Habits**

The morning came quickly, though as the auburn, golden crested sun rose, I didn't want to open my sealed, groggy eyes that were heavy with sleep. My hands twitched a bit, and I could feel solid, firm knitting beneath my fingers, getting caught beneath my nails, and tangled between my fingers. Something itched at my head, and I knew that I was forgetting something.

_Think harder,,. I need to think harder…come on Shikamaru…piece it together, piece it together…what is it you're forgetting Nara…_

My eyes shot open swiftly, quickly shooting back and forth,

"Crap!" I groaned and swung my head back, frustration bubbling in my throat, fingers twitching. I huffed and looked down at Hinata, who was obviously snug and comfortable in my lap, curled up in a ball, her arms still around my neck. It's a pure shame that I had to wake her up, but we had training today. I lightly grasped her hands, my grip was fixed, though chaste, and I swung her arms above my head and I put them in her lap tenderly. Lifting my finger, I prodded her in the nose with the digit, making a slight chirping noise,

"Boop!"

Her eyes shot open, the pale jasmine eyes flickering with sleep and disclosure, she was rendered speechless, a bit shocked about the sudden awakening. She seemed to be sent into a bit more of a fluster when she realized that she had fallen asleep on my lap. She stumbled a little bit backwards, staggering an incoherent bit. I sighed gently and rested my head against the tree and rolled my eyes in an imperceptible way.

_What a drag…_

"Good morning Hinata Hyuga." I said tediously, obsidian eyes flicking down at her, gaze impassive.

She appeared to have caught her breath, though still introverted, she uttered,

"G-Good m-morning Shikamaru N-Nara."

I groaned a smidgen, my dim eyes scanning over her porcelain face, her cheeks painted a pleasant cherry dye, gnawing at her bottom-lip, turning it a bloody, scarlet shade. Her pale eyes were mellow, brining on the appearance of a tender, sentimental lass. A beautiful, dark bundle of eclipse, dusky black hair contoured her pastel, insipid skin.

"Hey, no need to stutter around me, you can trust me, I'm not going to hurt you." I allowed a smile to broaden on my face, trying to be as tender as I could.

She was very untrustworthy of people, even me, the teen she shared a slumber, hugs, and tears with just a few hours before. She elongated her arm, her hand going into a light tremor, the lithe, uneasy fingers drawing out to meet the back of my throat, her appendages fumbling with the weaved textile, scrabbling and scratching at the knitted cotton, trying to loosen it so that she could make her way to the undershirt, also clawing at that. My eyes were widened, unsure of what to say, and unsure of what she was doing.

"Hinata…" I mumbled mellifluously, upper lip convulsing a tad, not very secure with her contact with my neck.

"Y-Yes N-Nara?" The young teen faltered. She really didn't know how to handle people. This was coming more apparent to me.

"What are you doing?" I asked flatly. I saw her finger finally pull down the neck sleeve of my shirt, folding it down. My nose twitched a smudge. I watched her fingers dance over my skin, her digits twirling gracefully on a tense area. Her nails finally lay on the spot of my neck which I wish that she never noticed. Her appendages chafed on the long, engorged incision. I thought her eyes were going to water again, but I was wrong.

"W-Why…Sh-Shikamaru Nara…?" Her eyes detained an apprehensive glance.

This question miffed me. I felt the soreness spread throughout my mind. Arching my head backwards, eyes compressing together, tapping my head unsentimentally, something throbbing in the back of my head.

"It's an accident scar, nothing more than that Hinata, don't worry, and I didn't do that." That was a lie. I just lied through my teeth. I felt awful, but I knew that I couldn't, and I wouldn't tell her at the time, she was emotionally weaker than she usually was on the moment.

"O-okay." She stuttered, "I-I'm sorry I c-came to that c-conclusion."

"It's fine, it's actually quite understandable as to why you thought it was self-inflicted, I mean, based on the status of my arms, anything is possible." I sighed gently, rubbing the back of my neck, a bit flushed. There were so many new editions to my flesh canvas, a few new strokes that run on the rough, dry skin, giving the skin more meaning. I felt horrible that Hinata followed down the same route I did.

"Now Hinata, we have training, we should probably get there before everyone else so no one is suspicious." I winked at her lightly, a tint of playfulness in my voice. I heard a little giggle come from her throat behind her grief stricken face.

I grasped the end of her hand, rubbing the top of her fingers with tenderness, using the bottom of my thumb. I helped her up, grasping the hand, and raising her from the ground. I picked up my over-coat, and I picked up her jacket, the velvety, white fleece seemed to melt in my hands, the texture plush and soft, calling for me to slip back into slumber.

"Here you go." I said swiftly, handing her the small fleecy coat, a few strands of silky fur getting caught between my fingers. I felt her grasp the pelt from my hand, seeing her slip it older her shoulders and zippering it up to her neck, her headpiece caught around her neck. I stretched upwards, a yawn slipping out of my mouth, and cracked my neck to the side. Gliding the jacket over my own shoulders, I wiggled a bit until it was comfortable. Fingering the hair-ties that held my high-bun in place, I noticed that I had to put it up again. I narrowed my eyes a tad bit, not sure if I wanted to in front of Hinata. I shrugged nonchalantly, thinking 'What was the worst possible thing that could happen?' Tweezing the elastic bands between two fingers, I pulled the stretchy circles from my dark chocolate hair, the split ends flaying around a bit. The hair fell down to my shoulders, and it instantly caught the pale-eyed girl's eyes. She watched with interest, a bit in awe of the long strands and mess that made up my hair. I shot her a small glance.

"Yes Hinata, this is my hair." I said, a bit of a joking tone in my usually flat voice.

"Y-you…have a-a lot of h-hair." She murmured gently, teetering side to side. I rolled my eyes gently before saying,

"Oh, and Neji's hair isn't long and angelic?"

There was that giggle again. That sugary sweet sign of amusement that came from her throat. Her simple laughter made me smile, the corners of my mouth perking.

Finally snapping out of my happiness, I re-did my high-bun, lightly running my fingers through the finished product.

_Well…I have more hair than the girl with the shortest hair out of all the Junín. Hey…maybe Sasuke has a crush on me. Supposedly he likes people with long hair._

I snorted in amusement at my own thoughts. _Ah, the way I make myself laugh. _

Hinata was staring at me, confused as to what I was laughing about, but I wasn't even going to mention it to her, maybe another time, because right now seemed kind of inappropriate at the moment.

"Well, we should probably get going." I muttered. She nodded in agreement after a few seconds of absorbing what I had just said.

I began walking, though I felt a presence quickly invade my hand, feeling fingers slip in between my own fingers, gripping them tightly. Why was she holding my hand? Eh, it was enjoyable, I'd let it slide. A hand in my pocket, and a hand holding Hinata's, we were making our way to the training site.

"W-why are you s-so slow Sh-Shika?" a little spurt of amusement tinged her voice.

"'Cause I'm lazy. And laziness is the mother of all bad habits. But, she is the mother, therefore, we must respect her."


	3. Bruises, Blood, All For Love

**Chapter Three;; Love Makes You Stronger;; Warning, Neji is extremly out of character, as he is going to be the antagonist of this story...kinda. **

The training grounds were empty at the moment, three stakes set up in the corner, a large rock near the side, and some of the ground was torn up from the training that occurred here. This was generally Team 7's ground, but we were coming here today for some training from Kakashi-san, though I our senseis would show up within no time. My grasp became supple, and my fingers glided absently from her tepid hand. Bronzed skin warm against the sunlight, I strayed to the rock and bounded up it, I settled on the face of the level, polished boulder. Slouching against the giant mineral, I sealed my eyelids, killing for a chance to plunge into another snooze.

I heard a small thump and my left eye opened a bit, hardly a slit. Through my obsidian eyes looked piqued, they held a bit of incredulity. Hinata glimpsed down at me tenderly, a yawn fleeing her cherry lips. Hoisting up my arm, I lightly patted her nose with a tender poke, I said, a bit of a chirp staining my snaky voice,

"Boop."

A little snigger broke away, a bit of laughter growling in her throat. Her hand shook hesitantly, though she raised it and outstretched it towards my nose, and she lightly laid a finger on the firm skin,

"B-Boop." She chimed gently, a vermillion blush rising to her cheeks. I smiled lazily, a lethargic look consumed my eyes. I was in high spirits that maybe she would be able to communicate openly with me, maybe finally letting someone in to facilitate her.

My concentration meandered towards a figure that I caught out of the corner of my eye. Shadowy, porcupine hair stood up, messy, though the front was neat, the back was spiked up and fringed. It was Sasuke Uchiha from Team 7. His darkened gaze met my own and we seemed to have a stare-down before her slowly tilted his head, his teeth were buried within the flesh of his bottom lip.

"Hn." Of course, that daft noise that he often made in a surrogate of speech. His eyes revolved, the emotionless orbs dared my own, solid gaze that held absolutely nothing. Our flaccid, unadorned, wordless, uninterested personalities clashed, challenging to see who was better at portraying our set personality, playing out emotions like a game. Our glimpse at one another continued to battle, trying to find some sort of sentiment or some sort of emotion hidden somewhere in each other's desolate, empty eyes, though not one thought flickered through the orbs.

I narrowed my eyes a bit to see out of the crook of them to see what Hinata was up to. Fumbling with the zipper on her fleecy hoodie, she was gazing at her feet, absently gnawing on her bottom lip, drawing a tad bit of blood. It was actually quite interesting, the way that the crimson liquid drizzled down the curve of her lip without her noticing, moving in between the thin lines, shading the plush, puffy flesh a vibrant pink color. But that changed quickly.

"Hey! Pineapple-head!"

Oh dear god, here we go again. This sputtering, immature, juvenile delinquent who could never back down from a challenge, one of the most headstrong and cockiest people I had met in ages. Though, the nickname he had for me actually had _some_ logic behind it, though it was the tad bit offensive. Though, given that my hair was spiked at the end, and constantly up in the air, the bun at the top of my head, the split ends coming up and sprouting at the face of the bun, so I suppose there was logic.

The younger, blonde-haired fool was crashing down from the trees, flinging himself in my direction, trying to attack me, trying to challenge me. Nevertheless, my eyes just glanced at him, not really caring, my mood being apathetic. Right before he almost straddled me, my arm flung out, clouting the arrogant little spawn, causing a mere discoloration to his cheek, flinging him off to the side and rolling him off the stone.

I saw that Hinata's eyes held a fretful gaze as to the damage that I did to Naruto Uzamaki, the blonde haired, arrogant snob. I mouthed gently to her an 'I'm sorry', receiving a small nod of her head. I huffed and nodded back at her, holding my forehead in my palm, putting pressure on the side of my head, a tingling feeling swathing my head, feeling rather woozy, the discussion between the other member of Team 7, Sakura, and the blubbering Naruto beginning to sound somewhat muffled, barely audible to my ears. I felt faint.

"You immature brat! What is it with you and jumping out of nowhere and attacking random Junin, let alone friends!?" The green eyes that the pink-haired girl owned were sizzling with exasperation and aggravation, her hand swung maliciously above her head, before cascading down, chopping the yellow-haired boy in the center on the head, causing him to whine a bit and cradle his head before getting back up and yelling,

"What was that for!?" His hands were drawn into his hair, tangled between the golden locks, his cerulean blue eyes holding a twist of anger and frustration, also a bit of pain.

My eyes caught a glimpse of more figures, walking in a group quietly, they seemed calm, collected, and somewhat irritated by the scene that was unfolding, based on the sneer that painted Neji's face, and the slight scowl it held, scorn held in his eyes. Ten-Ten stood somewhat behind the long haired, leader-like figure of the group, her eyes holding no sense of palliative, and they seemed provoked. Lee (Or as Naruto called him, 'Bushy Brows'), was the only one is the group who actually looked peppy, happy, and raring to go, his wrapped arms, and his unique, darkened eyes held pride.

The ebony haired, slightly older teen progressed over towards Hinata and I, his arms crossed tightly around his chest, his pastel mauve colored eyes held a sense of query, a flash of mistrust shot in my direction, though when he gazed at Hinata and I as a whole, his eyes held another type of emotion. I sighed gently. I knew he was going to probe me for answers.

"Shikamaru Nara," His voice seemed to gibe me, goading me, "You look…" He was trying to find words to speak, trying to taunt me seemingly. _Heh, aren't you clever? Trying to downgrade me yet you can't even come up with a proper taunt? What a drag_

"Under pressure."

I huffed. _Little Miss Priss and his long hair, and his special eyes, thinks he's so special…whatever. _

"Why do you say that?" My voice slithered, almost a hiss. My eyes still held its equilibrium, though my tenor tone wavered, the timbre became more gruff, a hiss staining my pitch.

"Because of that." His voice was simple, indicating he was talking about the tone in my voice. He stretched upwards and yawned. All I did was glare lazily at him.

"Why didn't my sister come home last night?" He probed in an inquisitive manner. He was going to question me until he got the answer he wanted, which I obviously wasn't going to let him pry out of me.

"I don't know, why didn't she?" I grimaced, my words almost forming into a snarl. My voice was vicious, somewhat protective of myself. He was such a supercilious, callous chap. Well, that's at least what I thought of him.

His eyes rotated, exasperated with my disdain, my derision annoying him greatly.

"Look, I know that you have something to do with her not being home, I can see that, it's easy to tell actually, now tell me Shikamaru Nara, why wasn't my sister home last night?" This time, his voice held a decree in it, not making it an option for me to not answer, though, I was willing to test that, but it wasn't worth it, though I could pester him a bit more while I was at it, wouldn't hurt.

"Ask your family, I'm not your sister's keeper, I wouldn't know." My finger prodding my bottom lip, eyes holding an austere, despondent gaze, teeth abrading the lower flesh of my lip, my gaze hardly met his silvery-lilac colored eyes. He crisscrossed his arms. I obviously thwarted his verbal attack.

He bear his back to me, obviously muddled, bothered, by my pessimistic, contemptuous, scornful, snide answers. His elongated, raven hair, the end of his hair slightly tussled at the end. His eyes inclined, narrowed with frustration.

I tilted my head, badgering him with a dark, emotionless look, arms behind my head, under-eyes looking somewhat mauve, though they looked baggy, though gave my shadowy eyes an un-amused feel to them.

As I prepared to stand up, I felt something seize my arm, wrenching me up by my wrist, the anticyclone pulsated, the blood throbbed in my veins, cutting off the circulation right there and then, hand gradually turning a saturated violet color, fingertips pulsating a wine color, a numb, anesthetized feeling, causing a whimper to garrote from my throat. My other hand tried to veer at the taller teen, trying to get released from his potent grip. This was going to leave bruises on my skin.

"Hey! Neji! Let go of my team mate!"

Finally, my team mates were here, about time! Ino would know how to handle this, knowing her bratty, yet demanding ways, she'd most likely be able to get the brawn, pale teen let go of me.

"Why should I?" Those words…I never thought those words would come out of his mouth.

"He's my team mate, and anyways, he's short, at least beat up someone your own size, go beat the crap out of Sasuke or Lee or whoever you fancy, as long as it's not my Pineapple-head!" The fierce, fair-haired female's hands clutched into tight fists, vengeance boiling in her system

"Yeah, let go of my friend! He may be small, tiny, and fairly annoying and all, but we still want his body in tact!" The rounded, balloon-bellied friend chirped from behind our more dominant team-mate. The blue-eyed blonde's eyes narrowed at our jelly-bellied friend, wanting to take care of this manner herself, not wanting our corpulent, normally tender team-mate to get in the way. Well, his name is Choji, which means 'Butterfly', but as they say, butterflies are beautiful and all, but if you take a bite they are deadly poison.

And that's when that sound that I dreaded rang through the air.

**Snap. **The sound splintered the air, the splitting sound of the fracturing bone in my wrist spiked the ears of the other Junin.

"S-Shikamaru!" cried the jade-eyed female who was around my age, her voice a blood-curdling yell for someone to help.

Kiba and Shino had just gotten there, Akamaru, Kiba's pal, also a dog, was there, sitting by his feet. The sallow puppy's lips drew back into a snarl as the snap pierced it's ears. Kiba, Hinata's team-mate, was not all so fond of me, though he seemed angered as well,

"Hey, girly-boy! Let go of the lazy lump!"

My eyes creaked open, everything somewhat blurry. It was that golden-haired, dumber-than-a-box-of-rocks idiot, Naruto. Though it was hard to seek past the tall youth's ebony hair, I knew Naruto's voice like I knew my studies.

"Yeah Hyuga-Scum, let go of the brat!" piped my light-haired comrade, her ponytail high-up, though swaying as much as her angered fist.

"How can I let go if I'm not holding you, Ino?" The fair-skinned male said flatly, his grip on my wrist tightening even more than before.

I could **feel** the frustration that flowed from my female partner, rage gushed from her body, pitching her chakra, and springing her determination to beat the pulp out of this tall, royal blooded Hyuga.

"This just got personal!" She hissed through her teeth, I knew she was most likely going to perform her soul-possession jutsu.

"How is this personal if you weren't in this problem to start with, you made this your problem." Muttered the placid-eyed boy, the tranquil look masking his powerful strength, he was a demon deep within himself.

"No, you made this **my **problem when you hurt my team-mate!" countered the angry female. She was a female. She'd find her way to bring him down and beat him.

"Ino, face it, I just snapped your partner's wrist in half, just imagine what I can do to your body, you're skinnier than a twig." Articulated the young man, a tell-tale sign he was bored.

"Says the walking green-bean himself!" snapped the blue-eyed beauty wolfishly, becoming an animal within a few lines they had conversed. He rolled his eyes at her, looking over his shoulder and tossing his hair a bit to the side, he was taunting her. It was a fact. Neji was a beautiful man. And he seemed to rival women in their magnificence.

"What's your problem, you jerk!?" She was so frustrated, steam could boil and shoot through her ears at this point.

"What's my problem…what's my problem?" His voice was hardly moot, the softness held nothing, though I knew that was covering his inner malice somewhere, somehow, "This…this stupid Nara kept my sister from coming home last night. She ran off and she didn't return. He interfered with her coming home. Everyone has their own fate, Ino, and no one can stop that, and this…this…disgrace to his blood interfered with Hinata getting home." _Hinata would be dead by now, you flaccid shell of a man…your ability to just watch your cousin get disowned and most likely killed for her weakness. _"Hinata would have come home, and he would have been out in the forest like he does every night, moping around like a lost, insecure puppy, smoking cigarettes to wash his pain away because the world was too much for him." I can't really argue with this, though I didn't smoke at this point, though now that he mentioned it, it was something I could put into consideration, maybe it would help with the pain, or maybe give me a sickness to end the pain.

"Hey! Shika isn't like that! He's too lazy to even try to get up and do anything! Why would he get up and mope when he can just sleep all day!" Great, another familiar voice, because I totally needed more people to try to stick up for me. Though, somewhat surprisingly, it was Kiba.

The pallid eyes rolled. He was probably sneering at everyone in his mind, insulting their posture, their words, their personality, slowly picking their demeanor apart and criticizing it to feel better about himself. All he was to me was an arrogant, selfish snob. _He probably thinks he's the best because he gets heritage of the Hyuga Compound. _

The little dog's tail was swishing side to side, though not wagging in an excited-peppy way, it was more so a threatening way. Ears laid back, pinned to the back of his head, teeth bared in a tight lock, a trialing snarl rumbling through his throat, sliding through his teeth. The little pup's anger made Kiba angry as well, getting flustered, if his dog thought something was a threat, than Kiba thought that thing was a threat. Business was going to go down.

"Kiba, quiet your stupid mutt." Those were some of the words that were really going to get Neji in a lot of trouble with other Junin here.

"Akamaru is not a mutt…you're just a porcelain pussy-cat afraid of a wild coyote like Akamaru." Snarled the brunette, scruffy haired male, his painted face holding a disturbed glower, obviously prepared to kill the strong opponent, hatred spawning in his eyes.

"Kiba, you're obviously a weakling drived by anger." Yawned the dark-haired male.

"Neji, you're obviously going to have my foot up you're a-." The coated teenager was cut off by Ten-Ten,

"Butt. What he means is butt."

Neji groaned, obviously seeing this as much of a drag as I did. But it was only a matter of time before the strong adolescent pulled something on me. I could feel it on the lower part of my arm, the swampy, somewhat creepy vibe he was casting down my arm, sending chills up my spine.

"Let's take care of this once and for all…." With a swift move, a severe, stalwart, ardent, acute thrust was sent hurtling into my gut, the hard flesh on my abdomen and lower stomach region plummeting inwards, the inner fluids in my body whisked uncomfortably. The pulse sent a metallic, coppery liquor began to upsurge in my throat, crimson fluid splattering in my cheeks, swirling as more began to stir up my throat, the watery gooey substance causing a seditious gag to erupt in my mouth, making me choke on my own blood. Lips parting, not able to breath at this point, crimson liquid shot out between my teeth, before my teeth segregated, the stream surged from the moist cavern that was my mouth. Chest heaving, trying to stockpile oxygen so I could breathe. Panting, short breaths huffing uncontrollably from my lungs, hardly able to keep myself from passing out.

"You really are pathetic, you lethargic loner."

That irked me. That would not do. With little strength that I could muster up, though it wasn't much, I swung my leg, accumulating pressure for the blow. Though my breathing was lethargic, if I didn't do something I was going to die. Enervated and imperceptible, the strike that I managed to lash out collided with the hardened muscle that was the lengthy-haired youth's abdomen. I achieved to afflict some sort of damage, because I heard a gurgling, anguishing grunt flee through the soft, fuchsia flesh the concealed the Hyuga's teeth.

Free at last. A gale, no, a haven of ventilation hit my arm. The sweet sensation of fresh, cool air swarmed my epidermis. Though I was plummeting from my height, where I was raised by Neji by my arm, constricted in the air against my will. Before I knew it, I fell squarely on my rear, though I had no time to focus on the pain. I scrambled up from my feet and clinging to my arm, though I made a far distance, well, what I considered far, from the extensive haired guy. I breathed heavily. My wrist was broken. This wasn't going to work out very well. Gripping the sleeve of my shirt, and the weaved overtop and coating the wound with it for now, hoping that it would keep it sturdier. I had a tad bit of a fear though. What if Neji screwed up my internal organs? But yet again, that was the least of my problems at the moment.

My fingers rummaged around my pocket, lithe, bronzed appendages seeking the monochrome, jagged kunai. A prick to my finger indicated that I had found the sharpened blades, the tip of one of the many spikes perforating my bruised flesh. A leer spread on my face, corners tightening, having a dim hope that I'd win this fight. A nick in my finger formed, blood leaking from the opening.

I was ready to fight for Hinata, and I was ready to fight for myself. I wouldn't let him lay a finger on her…ever.

_Hinata Hyuga…I love you._


	4. Loyalty to A Best Friend

**Chapter Four;; Loyalty to A Best Friend;; Just Me and My Shadow**

The kunai grasped lithely between my skinny appendages, I braced myself for a strike to hit me at any moment. Any movement could send me off balance. I needed to focus and put all of my energy into this, or I was going to be dead meat.

The lilac tainted eyes of the raven beast shot at me, the sides of his face turning all wrinkly and scrunched near the edge of his face. He was activating his Byakugan, which allowed him to have -360 degree view, along with x-ray vision to see into my chakra networking inside of my body. He was also skilled in close range taijutsu, which could be really, really bad in my case, especially his Eight Trigrams Vacuum Wall Palm ability. He was also fairly quick with his hand seals, his movements quick and hardly visible, though unlike Kakashi-Sensei, his were visible if you paid enough attention to the actions. Though what Neji doesn't really realize about me is that I, Shikamaru Nara, am a skilled tactician, can handle taijutsu, a master at ninjitsu, and has the ability to use an earth release power transformation. But most of this wasn't going to work, though I could make a strategy. I had shurikans and I had kunai, so this battle could be a drag, and I could possibly end up dead. How troublesome.

The twitch of the placid male's lip gave me the hint of what was going to happen. Tracing his footsteps, I knew what he was going to do. Slouching like I usually did when I was bored, I yawned, my hair was out in loose strands, though still somewhat up. Arm numb, it was literally the definition of the term "useless". The monotonous bounds he was advancing on me were evenly margined, his sandals sweeping dust up, swirled around his feet daintily, leaving a husky residue on the blue leather straps of the symmetrical shoes. Though what he did next I was not exactly expecting.

Within a swift, expeditious burst of power, the vigor in his clenched fists was visible. He was coming at me merely with his hands and his feet, though he had every reason to. It would catch me off guard of coarse, plus the fact that his swift movements could easily bring me down without him needing to waste any of his chakra.

Fatal, implacable blows were thrown at me, with clenched fists and rocky feet. One noxious kick to the side of the head jerked my head to the left, my neck letting off a small cracking noise. A fistful of lethal, shear power was released into my chest, hammering at my sternum, causing me to fall backwards, trying to breath in the obligatory oxygen, trying to heave as much of it in before he got another swoop at my diaphragm.

Another blow to the gut sent blood through my throat and into my mouth. Another clout in slightly lower regions, right below the stomach, more towards the abdomen, sent the sticky crimson liquid out of my mouth, the hot, repulsive, steely tasting, gooey substance painting my face with my own blood. The realization of my situation finally hit me as the slick fluid slipped into the nook of my nostril, giving me a good whiff of copper. I felt the foot being placed again near my sternum, being pressed harshly onto the bone plate that was in the center of my chest.

"Little Nara doesn't know how to escape fate anymore, does he? I guess his brain is too lethargic and too caught up in other people's identities to even consider his situation." It was a flat out sneer, trying to disgrace me. I would not allow this.

"Y'know twinkle-toes…you really are drag." I hissed in my serpentine tone, the slight edge to it slicing the air, " You go out of your way to hurt another person…just because they saved your baby cousin's life from your hands? I guess me trying to help and comfort your cousin the way she should always be treated is such a bad thing." My obsidian eyes met his lavender eyes, "Kill me, I dare you, see how far it gets you in the village." Eyes flashing towards Hinata, I could see her bundled up in a ball, shivering, quaking, her blood looked as if it could be quivering as well, her eyes beaded with tears, cheeks fumed with a vibrant pink from all of her crying.

"It would be my pleasure, Nara." Purred the pastel-eyed Byakugan user, his hand slithering into his pocket, searching for a few shurikans to take care of me, though I saw as he pulled out the shurikans, his fingers were shaking as if he didn't want to do it.

"Go ahead, I'm waiting." I said flatly, using my lethargic tone as usual, eyes heavy with lack of sleep. His brows furrowed into a scowl, obviously angered with me.

With no hesitation, he took a few of the shurikans from his hands, the four pointed blades glinted in the sunlight before I felt a stinging sensation in my shoulder, blood seeping into my jacket, the white, creamy garment was stained with even more blood than before. Another sharp edge entered my other shoulder, though it was the shoulder to the arm that was completely numb unless touched. The stinging was hardly there, though the burning lingered for merely a few seconds. That last of his shurikans entered into my torso, lodging themselves between the deep tissues in my torso.

Ten-Ten and Lee were so in awe, they didn't even know if they should be helping their team-mate, or if they should be fighting with him. The others were in as much awe as they were. Ino was standing, her legs forward, raising in a tightened fist, though she didn't move, her teeth baring, though there was no movement in her, as if she was frozen. Chouji watched quietly, he was cradling himself, rocking back and forth, whimpering, not knowing what to do. Naruto and Kiba seemed to be devising some sort of plan to help me, as they were talking all quietly and secret-like. Shino and Sasuke were leaned up against a tree, not making eye-contact, though making identical "Hn" noises back at each other, as if it was a language only the two of them understood. Sakura, the pink-haired female that Lee had a strong crush on, was sitting on the rock, stroking Hinata's back tenderly for comfort. I was thankful that someone was helping the jasmine eyed beauty.

Quickly, a hand shot down and latched around my throat, clenching tightly, as if he were trying to make my eyes pop out of my head. His hand had a firm, steady grip on my neck, not wanting to let go of the tight, able flesh. His short nails engraved my skin with markings, drawing only the slightest bit of blood from the new markings he had created.

"Nighty night, Shikamaru Nara. You'll be able to play with your shadows…forever now." His hand was about to make that backwards jerk to snap my neck, or worse, snap my head off my shoulders, when I heard something plunge into his back.

"No!" It was a choked out, heavy cry, the distressed call came from no other than the tender, gentle female who I cradled the night before in my arms to comfort her. Neji dropped me to the hot, scorching, sandy ground, causing me to hit my head roughly against the earth, though it was the least of my concerns.

Plummeting sluggishly, it seemed as if he was still trying to retain his stance and composure. Though other slits in his skin sliced through the air, the piercing, quick slivering sounds making my eardrums jump, the noise affecting my ears greatly, causing my head to ring for a few seconds, maybe minutes. Neji had been hit ten different times with ten different shurikans. On the ground, he was coiled in a baby-like position, if not dead, then knocked out.

I heard footsteps run towards me. My head was lifted off the ground, being cradled by small, gentle hands, hair brushed against my blood covered face, tears falling on my forehead, choked whimpers falling onto my ears. Whoever it was, it was nuzzling my head gently, trying to comfort me in my current agony.

"S-shikamaru…d-don't d-die…p-please." Choked out the voice, it was Hinata's recognized within seconds.

Reaching up a hand lightly to cup her face, though the shurikans ripped through the cloth of my jacket and sliced my arm a tad bit, I didn't care at this point. Tenderly thumbing her cheek, I swiped it across beneath her eyes, wiping up all the stray tears in my skin.

"Shh…..it's okay Hinata…I'll be okay…don't worry about me…"I tried to reassure her, though that was the opposite of the situation. Nothing was okay. I was losing blood and quickly, though I didn't want to frighten the already quivering soul. Her arms swung tightly around my neck, drawing herself in closer to my body, nuzzling her head between my chin and my chest where the shurikans laid. Her hands lightly stroking the skin, trying to soothe me, trying to ease my pain, or at least distract me from it.

I felt two shadows lingering over me, and I peeked one of my eyes open a slit. The blonde female who was on my team towered over me, along with the dog-loving, animalistic teenager. Ino and Kiba seemed fairly concerned about me, along with Kiba's puppy, Akamaru, the little pup licking some of the blood from my stained face.

"So Pineapple-head, how are yah?" asked a shrill voice from a distance. It was that troublesome blonde dope, Naruto.

"Glad to see you're still breathing, Shika." Smiled Ino gently, kneeling down next to me and brushing some strands of hair away from my face, "It was so nice of you to go out of your way to protect Hyuga Hinata so willingly…It's the kindest thing I've seen a lazy bum like you do in a long while there Nara."

"Yeah Nara, though we need to get you to the hospital… think that Sakura went to go get either Kakashi or Asuma…you'll be okay there soon pal, til' then, Akamaru will clean up some of the blood."

I gently grinned, taking in the fact that I had some pretty nice, good friends. Wrapping my swelling arm around the sobbing Hyuga, I gently caressed her shoulder, trying to offer her some of my heat and comfort, I kept cooing to her, and shushing her, trying to get her to calm down, also calming myself down while I was at it.

"There they are Kakashi-Sensei!" chirped a high voice from the distance, obviously the cotton-candy haired Sakura from Team 7.

I could feel the presence of the strong masked-nin, his silver hair messed up, though he gazed down at him.

"Well…this looks really bad, for both of them." He said blankly, though I was listening since her was referring to me.

"Hinata, you take Shikamaru, I'll take Neji, we're going to the hospital today guys."

With that, the timid Hyuga lifted me into her soft embrace, stroking a few more strands of hair out of my eyes before she fingered the hair-band that hung loosely in my hair, before sliding it off, allowing my hair to flow free.

"N-now…l-let's get you t-to the hospital…so you c-can get b-better." Stuttered the small teen.

"Don't worry Hinata, I will…I could never leave my best friend behind in the dust…never in a million years…"


	5. Punishment, Persecution, and Love

**Chapter Five;; Punishment, Persecution, and Love**

The sound of footstep in an empty room rung in my ears, the faint, little tapping noises sprung me out of my sleepy stage. Though the lethargic, sluggish look still staining my eyes, dark circles encasing my eyes with a heavy, bruise like shade. Though hardly slits, my eyes didn't want to open, everything around me fuzzy, smoggy, the colors muddled and diluted, warping everything into a twisty swirl. Voices were conversing within the room, low, high, and tenor pitches chirping quietly, well aware that I was sleeping, and if they woke me up I'd most likely attempt to snap their head off of their shoulders.

Everyone knew that I was lazy, and it took an empty-minded idiot to not understand that. I was Shikamaru Nara. The one skilled ninjustsu user who got bored easily, constantly snapping at others, and saying something was "troublesome" and calling it a day. It was obvious by how I always stood, slouched over, just enough for the laced tube-top to fold, wrinkling over my lithe, skinny body, the way that a jaded expression always plastered itself to my flesh, the uninterested grimace that always marked my mouth, the tedious eyes always squinted, bored.

Vision slowly returning to my dizzy eyes, my dark, obsidian eyes opened fully, glancing at all of the different in the room. There were seven different in my room. One of them being a tall, bronze, muscular man, chiseled features engraved in his firm face and packed muscles, obviously my mentor, Asuma. Fair-hair was easily spotted from the distance I was sitting at, the hair sweeping in a high-ponytail, a swipe of bangs hanging like another tail in the front of her head, her blue eyes scanning everyone around her, obviously flustered, it was Ino. The next figure I spotted was a corpulent, portly person, the ginger hair coming up in dual spikes on the side of his head, looking like cat ears almost, the elegant swirls on his face were moving, the person was chewing on something, so it was obviously Chouji. The five other figures weren't people from my team, though I knew them. In the corner, though I didn't suspect this, was the raven-haired, equally dark-eyed male, Sasuke, one leg resting against the wall, his eyes meeting a deadlock with mine, though not telling the others that I had awoken. Nest to Asuma sat Sakura, the pink-haired, whiny female from Team 7 that was always in some sort of brawl with Ino over who would get Sasuke as a boyfriend. Sleeping in the cherry-haired female was the blonde haired buffoon, Naruto, his streaked face was moving a bit, his cheeks puffing up with air, his nose breathing out that air, a bubble of snot busting from his nose along with the pressured air. The next character I had spotted was Shino, the masked spectacle wearer, who was always enveloped in his obsession with talking to bugs. The last of them that I had spotted was the dog-man, Kiba, his pup Akamaru turning towards me, his tail wagging. When the creamy colored puppy turned his attention towards me, the scruffy haired male had also noticed my awakening, his mouth slightly opening, his pointed fangs perfectly visible from this angel, his darkened eyes glancing into my own eyes. When the pastel puppy leaped from his owner's shoulder, it scampered over towards my hospital bed, scrabbling up and pawing at my nose before coating my face in quick licks.

A tender, restful caress to my cheek had caught my attention, causing my to respond quickly, my nerves getting the best of me, ruining my calm demeanor. Quickly jerking my head in the direction of the touch, my eyes quickly turned from infuriated to sincere within seconds of seeing who it was. The jasmine, beautiful eyes of Hinata-chan were glancing at me, blinking in a fluttery fashion, while my eyelashes batted rather slowly, sleepily. Trying to lift my arm so I could maneuver my hand to bop her on the nose caringly, my hand hovered a bit once the arm was lightly lifted, though instead of giving her a tap on the nose, I ended up brushing my fingers delicately down her face, arm falling back slowly to my side.

"Hinata…"I groaned sluggishly, the tenor tone of my voice slightly shaky, scared of fumbling over my bamboozled tongue, the pink fleshy appendage becoming heavily intense, becoming burdensome and hard to talk. My dull eyes traced her face for anything that could provide my any comfort.

That was when most of the other people in the room had noticed that my eyes had opened and I had submerged from my unconscious, comatose stage. My blue eyed team-mate strode towards the edge of my bed, gently poking me in the forehead before he chirped,

"Hey there Shika! How are you feeling!?" She asked excitedly, a smile spreading across her clear complexion, obviously happy about my awakening.

_Troublesome women…why does she have to ask me question right when I wake up? Am I not allowed time to breath? _

"I'm fine, Ino-Chan." I muttered under a sigh, strands of hair beginning to mat to my forehead do to the clammy feeling and the beads of sweat that were forming.

"Yeah, fine, also known as you're completely avoiding my question! What, are you going to tell your _girlfriend _instead of your own _team-mate!?" _She snapped at me cattily, her cyan blue eyes holding extreme agitation. _She really had the nerve to call my best friend my girlfriend? Real mature, Ino. _

"Yes, I'm trying to avoid your question. And Hinata and I aren't dating." I said flatly, my eyes conceiving little nothings, before muttered under my breath, not really caring if Ino-chan had heard it or not, _"Troublesome women."_

"See, Ino-Swine! You're irritating Shikamaru-san! You'll raise his blood pressure and give the poor kid a heart attack!" The pale pink haired Sakura growled at her rival, Ino.

"S-stop arguing y-you two, w-we d-don't need to h-hurt Sh-Shikamaru." Stuttered the small teenager next to her, her little, pale hands quaking with concern and fright of the other two girls. Lifting my hand up again, I sweetly placed my hand on her own, tenderly rubbing her hand between a thumb and a finger weakly. Glancing at me, her hands were still vaguely quivering. I shushed her again, trying to soothe the shaky female.

"There he is again, being a total flirt!" exclaimed the golden haired girl, her bright blue eyes opening widely, anger flooding them like a stormy ocean.

"Ino, leave." I heard Asuma demand, his voice emotionless, his hands hanging loosely over his knees, a vague expression painted on his face.

"But-"

"No, leave."

"But Asu-"

"Leave you ignorant little brat!" hissed the bronze and brash older man, his chestnut brown hair ruffled in frustration, teeth clenched tightly. _Oh so vain, oh such a bore that Ino. What a drag._

The fussy girl stormed out of the tawny, tan room, her stomps over-exaggerated to express her anger and annoyance with the situation.

"So, Nara, what really happened, and why did Neji attack you again?" of course it had to be the tattooed mutt-man who had to ask me, his sharpened teeth glistening a bit in the hospital light.

I huffed quietly, trying to think of what to say. _Think Shikamaru. Try to explain what happened…Think. Harder. Fit it together…perfect. Just perfect. This is absolutely perfect. _

"Well, I was hanging out with Hinata last night, she was a bit upset, but we just talked a bit, and we ended up falling asleep in the middle of our conversation, and Neji was angered that she didn't come home." I let most of it slip through my teeth, well, not _most_ of it, but the most of it that _they _had to know about the problem at hand.

"Well, Neji really snapped this time! I never knew that he could express anger like that! Who knew!" chimed Sakura from the bench in the room, her aquamarine eyes wide, exasperated and beyond belief.

"Sakura stop, this is Hinata's brother, he was probably concerned about her safety and took measures too far out of hand." I sighed gently, still caressing the raven haired girl's knuckles, her hands slowly coming to a halt, stopping their convulsing. I didn't want to lie to them through my teeth, but it was also no one's business unless it was maybe the Hokage.

"Hey guys, go outside of the room, I think it's best just to leave Hinata and Shikamaru alone, they probably want to talk alone, anyways, Hinata's been waiting ever since Shikamaru had been done with surgery to talk with him, retreat." The broadened voice of my mentor, he himself getting up, opening the door, and guiding the other ninjas out of the room before slipping out of the room, sending me a pair of "peace-fingers" before closing the door firmly, allowing us two birds chatter.

There was not chatter though. There was an empty, deadly silence between the two of us generally quiet, lonesome souls. Our eyes were lost in each other's, losing all train of though in the waves of jade seas, the eyes holding a gentle, milky texture.

Though what broke our beautiful silence was her piercing whimper. Had been sitting on the side of the bed the whole time, she had collapsed beside me, basically laying pressed up against me, her head falling in the nook of my neck, and holding my uninjured arm, squeezing it tightly. Our hands had been unlatched from each other's. Her cries were muffled into the skin in the side of my neck, the flesh seemingly absorbing her choked cries.

"Sh-Shikamaru…I t-thought that y-you were g-going to d-die on me! I-I t-thought I-I was g-going to l-lose you! N-never scare me like that e-ever again, p-please." Her stuttered was mixed with tears of joy that I was alive, and tears of grief, upset about the previous events.

"Shush…I'm so sorry Hinata…I won't scare you again like that…I'm sorry that I caused you that much grief…it's not your fault Hinata…it's not your fault…" I continued cooing to the timid, scared girl, nuzzling her hair gently with my nose, inhaling her scent.

"Sh-Shikamaru Nara…I….I…" She seemed to be searching for the way she wanted to say whatever she wanted to say, but as a vivd vermillion blush painted her cheeks, I knew what she was trying to say.

"Shush…I love you too, Hinata."


	6. Just For A Minute, We Can Have Heaven

**Chapter Six;; Just Me And My Shadow;; Just A Minute, We Can Have Heaven **

**Hey there guys! I'm sorry that I didn't give you another chapter in a week or two; I've been working on other stories –blushes in embarrassment- But here yah go! A new chapter to satisfy your minds!- Love, Nova~3 –teehee-**

_"Sh-Shikamaru…I t-thought that y-you were g-going to d-die on me! I-I t-thought I-I was g-going to l-lose you! N-never scare me like that e-ever again, p-please." Her stuttered was mixed with tears of joy that I was alive, and tears of grief, upset about the previous events._

_"Shush…I'm so sorry Hinata…I won't scare you again like that…I'm sorry that I caused you that much grief…it's not your fault Hinata…it's not your fault…" I continued cooing to the timid, scared girl, nuzzling her hair gently with my nose, inhaling her scent._

_"Sh-Shikamaru Nara…I….I…" She seemed to be searching for the way she wanted to say whatever she wanted to say, but as a vivd vermillion blush painted her cheeks, I knew what she was trying to say._

_"Shush…I love you too, Hinata."_

_Am I going to be rejected? What if that's not what she wanted to say? What if she was going to say that she was worried about me still, not that she loved me? Ugh! What a drag! Crap…I should have thought this through before I said anything. Maybe this is why ninjas aren't supposed to express emotions? Maybe this is why it's not recommended for ninjas to find love? _I gulped, expecting the young girl to leave. She was the one girl that I found unpredictable, she was shy, then there were times when she was happy, and not all that shy, and then there were times where she'd faint out of nowhere, if that wasn't troublesome enough, her shyness also got in the way of things she wanted to say but couldn't without breaking down.

"Y-you do?" The mumble was low and shaky, though she sounded relieved, and also a bit unsteady. Hands trembling against the skin of my arm, she clung onto it a bit harder. Her voice in my ear gave me shivers down my back, not because it chilled me, it was because it was kind of loud, louder then I expected from her, but yet again, her mouth was right next to my ear.

"Yeah…I do…" I said quietly, though the hiss that always tainted my tone to slightest bit rolled with my words, but that was usually granted by others, given it was a common occurrence.

"I t-though…" Her voice trailed off a bit, trying to fumble with the words that were caught in her throat, trying to think if they sounded right or wrong, or if they were good or bad to say, if they were appropriate or vain.

"What? That a lazy, obnoxious Nara like me didn't know how to love?" I probed gently, my hand crawling up the her shoulder, kneading the soft area between my fingers. The look on her face was priceless, mouth agape, face flushed with one of the most beautiful shades of crimson I had ever seen, more graceful than a rose, and her darkened raven hair fluttered over her shocked eyes.

"H-hey…" Muttering under her breath, she had something to say to me. I could tell because she was trying to get my attention, and that was obvious through her words, and through the fact that one of her hands had risen to one of my cheeks, cupping my face with a delicate hand.

"Yes Hinata?" I asked inquisitively, my dark chestnut eyes casting down on her, trying to get what she was going to say out of her.

"I l-love you, Shikamaru." Whimpering, I could tell that she really meant it. If Hinata meant something, it came out in a whimper, or it came out stuttered.

"I love you too." I smiled gently, closing my eyes and resting my head tiredly against the soft, plush, insipid pillow. Bandages laced my skin like a second layer of flesh. A small chuckle bellowed from my throat.

"Wh-what are y-you laughing a-about?" sighed the dusky haired girl, suspicion held in her eyes.

"Nothing really…just how you stayed here with me the whole time, I laughed a bit because I thought it was funny that someone cared that much, it also touched my heart." I smiled gently end traced my fingers gently around the lobe of her ear, the slightest edge of my rounded nail trailed down her cheek gently before straying off-path, landing a light bop on her nose, "Boop."

A tiny, almost inaudible giggle broke from her throat, a flash of tenderness washing over the warm jasmine eyes. Crawling a bit closer to me, she rested her head on the side of my chest that wasn't injured. Her little hands rested somewhere on body, one minuscule hand on my stomach, resting of where the bandages were tied firmly, the other finding a way to make itself comfortable behind my neck. A small smile plastered itself on my face, finding peace and tranquility with her presence.

"Ah…how I wish were outside, watching the clouds…how I wish that I could be a cloud and just float around and be free…" I huffed leisurely, placing the hand on her back, caressing the soft area between her light, fleecy jacket.

"If you were a c-cloud, t-then what would that m-make me?" she murmured, her mouth forming into a smile against my chest, less words stuttering.

"If I were a cloud, you'd be a cloud, floating there beside me…carefree… you wouldn't have to worry about anything…" I laughed dryly. I knew with the life of a ninja came no time of piece. We were all training to kill and fight, to be shinobi and kunoichi, all to do the same old ritual. I for one, was a rank ahead of everyone else, being a Chunin, being the only one promoted to the roll. No one expected it, given they just considered me a lazy-slack off, but there was obviously potential in me somewhere.

"No w-worries…?" her voice held disbelief, a bit of grief tinged her voice, I could almost feel her frustration.

"Yeah…as clouds, all you do is stroll around the Earth and look over everyone else, and rain, washing everything bad away…" I mumbled, lost in thought.

And yet again, she shifted, sitting up a bit, a tad bit shaky, but she had a bit of confidence in her eyes, though it was only a tinge, given the rest was drowning in the reality that we lived in a screwed up and cold world that never rests to stop blood shed.

The way she moved, the way her pale, insipid jade eyes traced the twitching of the side of my lip, the way she scanned my eyes for traces of anything and everything, her hair lightly falling over her eyes, though the rest of her hair that fell a bit away from the start of her neck from her head was peach fuzz, leaving her hair short to signify that her feelings didn't belong to Sasuke. I felt a warm hand brush against my cheek, and it eventually lay there firmly, though also tenderly. Face shifting closer to mine, we were hardly breath lengths away from one another's eyes, one another's lips. Our eyes met in a deadlock, picking into each other's gawk, almost as if we stared into each other's soul.

"How a-about…we pretend f-for maybe a f-few m-minutes….even s-seconds…that w-we're c-clouds…and t-that w-we have p-peace." It was a drawing whisper, kindling a light in my heart that had long vanished. _Love._

Our lips met.


	7. When I Looked Into Your Eyes

**Chapter 7;; Just Me and My Shadow;; When I Looked Into Your Eyes**

**AU;; -teehee- So, a little bit of fluff, a little bit of sweetness. We should just title this story "Fluff"! Y'know…cause it's so sweet? So anyways…here we go, pack your bags, because we're going to take a ride of the "Feels Bus"! The feels on the bus go round and round…round and round…round and round…-Love, Nova =). **

_"If I were a cloud, you'd be a cloud, floating there beside me…carefree… you wouldn't have to worry about anything…" I laughed dryly. I knew with the life of a ninja came no time of piece. We were all training to kill and fight, to be shinobi and kunoichi, all to do the same old ritual. I for one, was a rank ahead of everyone else, being a Chunin, being the only one promoted to the roll. No one expected it, given they just considered me a lazy-slack off, but there was obviously potential in me somewhere. _

_"No w-worries…?" her voice held disbelief, a bit of grief tinged her voice, and I could almost feel her frustration. _

_"Yeah…as clouds, all you do is stroll around the Earth and look over everyone else, and rain, washing everything bad away…" I mumbled, lost in thought. _

_And yet again, she shifted, sitting up a bit, a tad bit shaky, but she had a bit of confidence in her eyes, though it was only a tinge, given the rest was drowning in the reality that we lived in a screwed up and cold world that never rests to stop blood shed. _

_The way she moved, the way her pale, insipid jade eyes traced the twitching of the side of my lip, the way she scanned my eyes for traces of anything and everything, her hair lightly falling over her eyes, though the rest of her hair that fell a bit away from the start of her neck from her head was peach fuzz, leaving her hair short to signify that her feelings didn't belong to Sasuke. I felt a warm hand brush against my cheek, and it eventually lay there firmly, though also tenderly. Face shifting closer to mine, we were hardly breath lengths away from one another's eyes, one another's lips. Our eyes met in a deadlock, picking into each other's gawk, almost as if we stared into each other's soul. _

_"How a-about…we pretend f-for maybe a f-few m-minutes….even s-seconds…that w-we're c-clouds…and t-that w-we have p-peace." It was a drawing whisper, kindling a light in my heart that had long vanished. Love._

_Our lips met. _

_So all she wants is peace and prosperity…so she wants tranquility almost as much as I do? _

The heat that emitted from her lips was warm and welcoming. The kiss was chaste, gentle, tender…loving. After a moments thought, my lips united with her, to share mutual feeling. Her lips were sugary and sweet, a familiar taste similar to honey, though I knew mine were tainted tart, coppery, from blood, sweat, and tears that were drawn from a day's worth of fighting and pain, my lips were cold, shaky, frail, the complete opposite of the sensation of hers'.

Though, the easy essence was short lived. After what seemed like hours, though it had been only a minutes worth of time, we both released each other from the lip-lock. Gazing into each other's eyes, it seemed as if we both got lost within the depths of which were what used to be. Happiness was once there. Peace was once there. Tranquility lost, somewhere so far that it cannot be returned. Now we live the lives of ninja, bathed in blood, the will to fight, and the need to kill. Kill to defend the people that we love. Fight to protect a village that hold the lives of clan's that have lived here for generations, and for many generations to come. We didn't even know what it was like to feel anything anymore. We are trained to be killing machines, or females can be trained to be medics to heal those who get injured on the field, and occasionally mail-nin and cook-nin, who would deliver and cook for hungry ninjas. Everything that the village was focused on revolved around a stronghold, and our line of defense. They call it "The Will of Fire", to want to protect the people of the village, to make sure that their life is okay. But why should we need that? Why does everything have to revolve around death, destruction, and chaos? Is it to make us stronger? Is it to make us better? What does this do? Ninjas aren't supposed to love, aren't supposed to have emotions, they aren't supposed to feel anything when someone is lost or a team member dies. They are supposed to be droned out of everything. They are supposed to not care. But is that really how everything should work? Should this be the way that we have to live? When will everything get better?

"S-Shikamaru?" stuttered the little raven haired female quietly, one of her fingers, most likely her index finger, was circling an oval on the side of my neck, comforting, but also trying to get my attention. I suppose I had gotten too lost in thought to say anything. When I blinked though and saw a clearer view of what was happening, I could see the budding of tears that were starting in her eyes. Nibbling on my bottom lip, I hoped for the tear that I knew would slide out not to come. As the first tear slid down her cheek, I could almost feel her sadness and agony. Lifting my arm, I drew it around her back and brought her close so I could "hug" her with one of my arms. Cuddling her closely, I nosed her hair, breathing in her saccharine scent.

"Hush now…Hinata, what's wrong?" I questioned thoughtfully, my voice twined with my cutting concern the concentrated solely on the midnight blue haired female.

"S-Shikamaru…l-let's f-face it…t-there will b-be a day…w-when you're g-going to d-die…and I-I'm going to be a-alone in the u-universe…but e-everyone will tell m-me that it's m-my fault…b-because I fell in l-love with a n-ninja…and n-ninjas aren't s-supposed to have f-feelings…" murmured the little girl between sobs, her words being choked on each time they tried to slide gracefully out. She did have a point, and I really couldn't argue with that. It was true. Ninjas were warned not to take on a husband or wife and have a family without knowing the consequences of doing so. Ninjas died. They died all the time. And it was easier than others though. Ninjas could die easy deaths, quick blows, one slice, anything could happen. Death was inevitable when you lived the life of an assassin.

"Hinata, listen to me. Death is inevitable, as is change. You have to take risks in life. And if I have to, I'll take a risk by being with you." I murmured lightly, though there was something that tainted my tone. Was it guilt? Was it grief? No. It was fear. I didn't want to lose her.

"Shikamaru…j-just d-drop it. Let's not t-talk about it, o-okay?" it surprised me. She sounded almost vigorous, demanding, not wanting to discuss all the death, all of the loss that us ninjas suffered out on the field and in the village.

"Yeah, I'll drop it." Sighing, I then lightly brushed the rough of my thumb against her cheek before saying, "We should probably get Asuma-sensei and the others back in here before they start to worry or suspect anything."

I groaned hoarsely and buoyantly poked her plush raven hair, before trying to get myself to sit up. Murmuring a few curses beneath my breath, I began to achingly sit up, my spine tingling in pain as it moved upwards from its dormant area. Pushing the weightless being off of my chest, I rested my chin on my knees as they met my face. Sight becoming blurry, I croaked, mumbling beneath a sigh. Unsteadily getting up from my spot on the bed, I lethargically made my way towards the door. The cold wooden floors creaked a bit as I began to stumble. Though, finally making it to the door, I placed my hand firmly on the handle.

"W-wait!" I turned my head to look at the jasmine eyed beauty, "Yes, m'love?"

"There's something I should t-tell y-you…" Quirking an eyebrow the slightest bit, I replied, "Yes, anything love."

"There's just…something I should have told you…when I l-looked into y-your eyes."


	8. AUTHOR'S NOTE IMPORTANT! 3

**Just Me And My Shadow;; Chapter N/A;; Author's Note**

**Hey guys, it's me, Nova. So, well, this is my most popular story, but, I don't really know what to do with it at this moment, I mean, I do, but I don't at the same time. Now, since you guys are the ones reading it, I had an idea for you to chose from. Okay, so idea one was that Shikamaru and Hinata remain a couple, though things get difficult, but they stay in a relationship until the Hidan and Kakazu article, and I'll end this part of the story "Just Me and My Shadow" after Shikamaru leaves the hospital, and then make a sequel starting in the Hidan and Kakazu article, with binding in Asuma-Sensei's death, and Shikamaru tries to commit suicide, and blah blah blah, and then I'll somewhat morph the story a bit of the Hidan and Kakazu arc, and yeah, it'll be awesome and such. Now, what do you think?- Love, Nova. **


End file.
